[Reader-list] Fwd: [pudr-info] Press Statement: PUDR strongly condemns the unconstitutional and undemocratic act of the Central Government in detaining Anna Hazare and his supporters

[Tara Prakash]

No comments from Shuddhabrata Sen on this? Last time there was an email from 
him on this issue on the list where he sounded deferential to the law makers 
and almost contemptuous of Anna Hazare and his supporters.


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Nagraj Adve" <nagraj.adve at gmail.com>
To: "Sarai" <reader-list at sarai.net>; <chhattisgarh-net at yahoogroups.com>; 
"Free Binayak Sen" <free-binayaksen at googlegroups.com>
Sent: Tuesday, August 16, 2011 9:38 AM
Subject: [Reader-list] Fwd: [pudr-info] Press Statement: PUDR strongly 
condemns the unconstitutional and undemocratic act of the Central Government 
in detaining Anna Hazare and his supporters


> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: PUDR Delhi <pudrdelhi at gmail.com>
> Date: 16 August 2011 18:04
> Subject: [pudr-info] Press Statement: PUDR strongly condemns the
> unconstitutional and undemocratic act of the Central Government in 
> detaining
> Anna Hazare and his supporters
> To: pudr-info at pudr.org
>
>
> *PEOPLES UNION FOR DEMOCRATIC RIGHTS*
>
> *Press Release*
>
> *16th August 2011*
>
> ** **
>
> Peoples Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR) strongly condemns the
> unconstitutional and undemocratic act of the Central Government in 
> detaining
> Anna Hazare and his supporters in the early hours of 16th August, who were
> scheduled to arrive at the site of peaceful demonstration. PUDR considers
> the conditions laid down by the government such as number of participants
> allowed, timing of the demonstrations etc. to be authoritarian. PUDR is
> concerned that this clampdown on democratic rights represents the 
> shrinking
> democratic space in the country where S. 144 of CRPC is used to prevent
> citizens from lodging their disapproval of government policies and 
> actions.
>
> PUDR is of the opinion that irrespective of politics they espouse,
> individuals and organisations have the legitimate right to mobilise people
> and stage protest against the government policies which they dislike or
> oppose.  In the specific instance of the Lokpal bill there maybe sharp
> disagreement over the various versions of the bill in the public domain 
> from
> a variety of vantage points. We are mindful of the fact that two most 
> talked
> about bills namely the government version and Anna Hazare’s team version
> have been subjected to public criticism for a variety of reasons. 
> However,
> for the government to claim that once the matter is placed before the
> parliament there is no cause for public protest  smacks of government 
> being
> innocent of constitution they have sworn to protect. We wish to remind the
> central government that neither they nor the parliament can take away
> people’s inalienable rights under the spurious plea that once people elect
> their representatives right to protest by citizens gets curtailed.
>
> PUDR  is also concerned that it is the Central Government, which  by 
> taking
> recourse to undemocratic means,  is further alienating people and 
> compelling
> them, to *either *become mute witness to 
> government-bureaucracy-corporations
> nexus  in loot and plunder of the public funds, or to  take recourse to
> violent means of protest.
>
> PUDR, therefore, calls upon people to oppose the government stand on
> clamping down on legitimate protests and question government's right to
> decide what is permissible and what is not, so long as protests are
> peaceful.
>
>
>
> Paramjeet Singh and Harish Dhawan
>
> (Secretaries PUDR)
>
> ** **
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